Daylight: Meeting Your Own Death

All of us, every single one, will die. It's not pleasant to think about and we mostly avoid thinking about it. But sometimes, during the course of living your normal life, death comes a little nearer than you'd like. Maybe you've lost a loved one. Maybe, like me, you've had strokes and chronic illnesses that shut down your body. Or maybe you passed a very bad wreck on the highway and thought, "There, but for the grace of Spirit, go I."

Today, I heard a wonderful song by Maroon 5. (I get the best ideas for posts either driving in the car or in the shower!) I know it's meant to be about a relationship, but I saw the song as an extended metaphor. Take a listen.

The chorus goes as follows:

And when the daylight comes I'll have to go

But tonight I'm gonna hold you so close

Cause in the daylight we'll be on our own

But tonight I need to hold you so close

This got me thinking. When we die, it is said that move towards the light. No one can accompany us. No friends or family can hold our hands. Death's Door is one we must walk through, alone.

I got a small notion of this when I had my daughter. Even though Hubby, my father and numerous friends were there to support me, ultimately, I was the only one who could bring The Precious Pookie into this world. The Door of Motherhood was one I had to walk through alone.

I like to think that I'd meet Death the same way I met Motherhood. Calm and resolute, with my head held high. I'd like to think that I would not need any help in navigating the Bardo. I'd like to think that I would move past this world and its cycles and on to whatever great adventures lie beyond this plane.

Thinking about death, in general, can be a great subject for art. What kind of impact do you want to leave this world as your legacy? Think of what creations you want to be remembered for, after you're gone and work on them now, while you still have time.

'Cause babies, when that Door of Death opens and you can see daylight, brighter than you've ever known? It's time to go. You will pass into the light, alone. So, now, embrace your art. Embrace your creative dreams. And, above all, embrace all that you want to remember from this plane. Every person and situation that made you the beautiful soul you are, today - hold them close.

My fellow visionaries, it's now that I embrace you and all this plane has to offer - all of its inconsistencies and beauties and intricacies. All the way out and down to its limits. While I am still incarnated here, I will continue to love every single particle and experience and embrace them all.

I hope you enjoyed this post and please remember, my lovelies, that we are all visionaries. We just have to figure out where we excel.

Love to All My Relations,

-Bri


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This is Water: Changing How We Think

This week, I found this wonderfully amazing video. Before I go on to my thoughts on this subject, please watch it.

Wow! I don't know about you, but that was one of the most amazing videos I've seen, this year.

As much as I try to live my life outside of what people call, "the daily grind," sometimes it sneaks in. Sometimes I do have to go someplace during rush hour in a big city. Sometimes I do need food at peak grocery store hours. Sometimes, life's little annoyances happen to me, too.

And, as much as I try, sometimes I forget my goal. I go into a grocery store in my hometown and see the little brother of an ex-boyfriend. I'm sure he doesn't know why my body posture goes stiff when I see him. I'm sure he doesn't understand why I have to strain for polite words. But his eyes, the eyes that his brother also has, reminds me of a time of great emotional pain.

It is times like these that I remember that I am still struggling with keeping myself grounded, that I am still (despite all my inner work) having a hard time forgiving and that I am not a 100% enlightened being, yet. Still, I do try. In the parking lot, sitting in The Visionary Van, I try to calm my heart rate. I try to find that wise portion of myself which is capable of distancing itself from the memory this boy invoked. I try to feel what it would be like to extend to him, to his family, to even his brother the handshake of friendship and shared experience that I try to offer all of humanity.

My art, my writing, my creativity, my inner emotional and spiritual work. These things are not separate. They are all intrinsically linked to each other. Back before my loads of inner emotional and spiritual work, my art was about pain and longing. It connected with people on an emotional level of shared sadness and suffering. I even received some minor notoriety for it, publishing 3 books and having 1 art showing.

As I began to change and heal, my art and writing began to change. I began to see how we can connect with each other through the shared experience of beauty, joy and (the most basic heart response) love. I began to put my lifelong quest for modes of healing into my writing, into this blog, into seeking out others who are shining out the same light I am.

I know I am not alone in this journey. I know that there are a million souls out there on this planet and beyond that are seeking a connection with each other. We are seeking something more than what we've been shown. We are looking out into the night sky and deep into the eyes of our neighbor, asking each the same question, "Is there anyone that feels like I do?"

Well, I can tell you, my lovelies - YES! There are millions of us out here. You are not alone!

When we change the way we think, when we change the way we view our own world, our lives begin to change. Nights that were once spent alone and terrified of our aching need to be loved are replaced with nights where we are alone and comfortable in our solitude because we know that we are never, ever really "alone." No matter what we have gone through or what we desire to create, another soul in this vast place has felt and desired the same thing.

No matter where you are in your journey, just keep remembering that what you look for, you will find. Just keep reminding yourself to be kind, to seek your truth, to be as creative and joyful and peaceful as you can. We will meet, one day. Of that, I am certain. And, oh do I look forward to that meeting. I can't wait to see your eyes as you see that, yes, I am a real person and, no, you aren't really alone.

Choose what you desire your life to be and seek to make it so. Remember - this is water!


Until next time, my lovelies, please remember that we are all visionaries. We just have to figure out where we excel.

Love to All,

-Bri

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Levitate - Can You?

I found this video last week and I was amazed. Before I go on, I'll let you watch it.

The song is by a band named Hadouken and is called "Levitate." The lyrics are as follows:

Heart in my mouth, but my head in the clouds yeah
I can feel it rising
Bound to the Earth but, we could ascend yeah
I’m realizing
I feel both feet lift off the ground
I can levitate
With every truth that leaves I close my eyes
And levitate


Oh, my darlings. Where to start? Every time I see videos like this of my fellow humans reaching for the sky, I am inspired. Every time I hear a song that alludes to Universal Truth, I feel so grateful to be alive.

My dears, each of us can aspire to be the highest and best versions of ourselves possible. We can take up the mantle of our Spirit-given gifts and run with them. We can use them every day in this world to lift each other up, inspire each other, help each other.

The truth of it is that we can work together, if we can put all of our efforts into making this world beautiful and whole, we CAN levitate. We can raise each other up, higher and higher. By working together, can banish poverty and sickness and the hurt that lies in the hearts of our neighbors.

I may be an idealist. I may speak of something that is beyond what we think the people of this world are capable of doing, but I have hope. Even if it doesn't happen until I'm long, long dead, I believe that we can turn our lives around and shine forward our best faces for The Universe to see.

Be amazed, my lovelies. Be in awe. Be humbled by this world and all the people in it and give thanks that you are alive to see such wonders. The Babylonians couldn't even conceive of a thing like the internet, where we can talk to anyone, anywhere in the world at pretty much any time we desire. That we, through technology, have access to all the collective knowledge that man has amassed. How cool of a thought is that?

And we take it for granted.

I believe, dears, that we can levitate. More than levitate, I believe that we can fly past what we've ever thought possible. I think it's only a matter of time before every soul, everywhere sees it. I'm just the visionary.

For a long time in this life, I was angry. Sure, I was happy and sad and in awe, but beneath all those emotions at the core of me was anger. And I was angry at everything. I was angry with sexism and classism and racism and homophobia. I was angry that I had a traumatic childhood. I was angry that people around me teased me and found me to be "less than" them. I was angry that I'd been hurt and I was angry because, in my mind, I secretly felt that I deserved every single crap thing that happened to me . . .

I know. It's tough to admit. . .

I am different, now. Now, my underlying emotion is one of joy. Sure, I get sad and I get mad, but my "default setting," now, is joy. But my anger made me fierce. In my younger years, my anger galvanized me into someone who could look past all of the negative and see through to the light.

And, now, I can turn back and show everyone the path. Through my words and art, I can tell my story and illustrate to you that, if I've walked the path of coming through all the worlds' negativity, you can too. No matter your story, you can step beyond it into a life of pure, unbridled, down-to-the-tip-of-your-toes happy.

Right now, I'm levitating. But I can't do it alone. In order to truly fly, I need other to come to where I am. We all need each other. We are communal organisms. We thrive best, together.

I'm so happy that you are all coming with me on this journey of life. I feel blessed to be able to write to you.

Until next time, please remember that we are all visionaries. We just have to figure out where we excel.

Love to All,


-Bri


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What the World Needs Now. . .

I think almost everyone has heard it. And, according to the 1965 popular song sung by Jackie DeShannon, what the world needs now is love - sweet love.

What can I say, my lovelies? I disagree. I think the world needs more than that.

In the world today, where war rages, race and religion divide us, spiritual and political ideologies make us think that our neighbors are our enemies, what could this world need more than love, you ask?

In my opinion, the world needs YOU, my darling.

That's right. The world needs you!

Alive, blessed, fully-present. This world needs people who can see, can speak, can dance, can march, can invent new and better ways of being.

This world needs you. Every single person who reads these words. It needs your great ideas, the love from your tender heart, your strong arms that hold your children, your determined feet that carry you through this life, your beautiful voice that sings songs of triumph, joy, and sadness.

You do not have to be more than you are. You do not have to do more than you already do. You are seen by this Universe, you are known, you are beautiful and you are loved. And, most of all, you are not alone and you are so vastly important.

Don't think so? Allow me to convince you.

Take a moment and think about all the great leaders that have come from this world. Jesus, Mohammed, Buddha, Martin Luther King Jr., Ghandi, Mother Theresa, Einstein. These names and people are our legacy as the human race. These are the shining examples of us as a human family.

I used to watch "Def Poetry Jam" and I loved the poets on it. Some beautiful quotes that ring through me come from here. "Don't let the universe regret you." "Be worthy of your ancestors."

As humans, all a part of this species, all of the names I mentioned above? They are our ancestors. What a beautiful legacy to try to live up to, no?

And think about those people, how each had teachers and food preparers and trash collectors. Every single one of these people had a vast support network of people around them. And those people may not have had any clue as to the part they were playing in human history!

Who made the pencils that Einstein wrote with? Who wove the blankets Mother Theresa used to comfort children? Who made the paper that held Martin Luther King, Jr.'s famous speech? Who was Marie Curie's teacher? All of these unnamed people, by just doing what they did, helped and supported these wonderful icons of love, of freedom, of kindness and discovery.

So, no. I don't think that all the world needs is love. I think it needs more than that. I think this world needs every single person, doing what they do with love in their heart. You never know who you may be supporting.

A girl comes through your shop line and is 3 cents short for ice cream? You give her the 3 cents and, later in her life, she goes on to become an EMT who saves lives on a daily basis.

A boy receives a building block set for Christmas from a stranger? He goes on to become the next Frank Lloyd Wright.

Oh, my dears, never think that you are of no use to this world! Never think that you're alone, unseen or under-appreciated. We visionaries, we are out here. We see what you do and we say prayers for your safekeeping and strength at the end of every day.

Om Nama Shivaya

The bracelet I wear on my left wrist

To the hands that sewed the beautifully comfy, maroon pants I'm wearing now, thank you! To the heart that composed the song I'm listening to on my IPod, thank you! To the arms that harvested the rice for my Chex this morning, a million thank you's! To the legs that walked the fields and produced the coffee in my cup, there is no amount of gratitude that is adequate enough for you!

Just by going about our lives and doing what we do, and maybe doing it with kindness, we enable such wonderful leaders to rise. We enable Virginia Woolfe to write. We enable Alex Grey to paint. We allow Betty Friedan to march.

And what a beautiful thing to be a part of, this life that we have been given. No matter the circumstances.

So my dears, I am Visionary Bri. And I am telling you that what the world needs now is you, dear soul. Just you.

And please remember that we are all visionaries. We just have to figure out where we excel.

Love to All,


-Bri


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Gay Rights and the Artist as Revolutionary

This video has been buzzing around the internet, lately. This preacher in Springfield, Mo. went in front of the city council to speak out against gay marriage. At the "final minute," there is a surprise. Please watch the video all the way to the end.

 

When I finished the video, I wanted to hug him. Immediately, I sent out this email:



To the City Council of Springfield,

My name is Bri and I am writing to you, this evening, regarding the subject of gay rights. When I was 18 and in college, my best friends were gay men. Now that I am 31, all of my best friends are still gay men. Gay men peopled my baby shower. Gay men were the first non-family to hold my precious daughter when she was born. When my family has had financial trouble with bills and Christmas for our children, it has been my gay friends who have come through for us with monetary help, food and gifts. In turn, when they stumbled upon hard times, my family returned their generosity in kind. Gay people are my friends. They are my family because one of my cousins is gay. They are my support network, the shoulder that I cry on and the people that I trust.

This country that we live in, The United States, was not founded on religion or intolerance for that which is different from us. It was founded on the principles of freedom, meaning that we are all free to choose our life paths. We are free to our happiness, to help our neighbors and to tell our governing bodies what we think. Council, I say this to you. Gay people are not some "other," like black people were once considered, as well. They are not to be pushed aside, demonized or denied their rights. They are our friends, our neighbors, our coworkers and our families. But, more than that, they are citizens of the United States of America which used to be the country who led by example. We used to be "the land of the free." Can we still call ourselves that, anymore, if we don't give all of our citizens equal rights? If not, then where are we left? What do we stand for? Where do we go from here?

Council, I hope that you will keep these thoughts in your mind as you decide the issue and I hope that the wisdom I know you have will prevail. We can change the world. We can make it better for everyone. People all over this country are looking to you.

Thank you for your time,

Briana aka Visionary Bri

I don't often write letters to the political sphere. Though, when I was pregnant with my daughter, I did find that I could write letters to the office of the President and those pregnancy hormones did fire off a strongly worded letter or two. Want to write one too? Here's the web address.

I know that not all countries have even a portion of the freedoms that we have, here, in The United States. I also know that other countries give their citizens more freedoms than we have. At this point in time, I'm just trying to make my little corner of the world better for everyone around me. I'm not one of those that champions the country that I live in to be the best. It is only one of many. I'm very much in favor of world ideas, meaning ideas that bring us together, rather than divide us. I look forward to the day that everyone, no matter where they're from can truly be a citizen of this world and not just a citizen of a country.

In this world, it is the artists who give rise to movements. We question, we spur, we inspire. Artists dream revolutions and write about peace. If you are a creative person, this is your legacy. You can be a vehicle for change in the world through your art and in your life. That is one of the things I'm trying to do with this blog and, indeed, my entire creative arsenal.

What would you like to see change in this world? What are your revolutionary ideas? What causes do you champion?



Remember that we are all visionaries. We can all make a difference in this world. We just have to figure out where our passions lie and where we excel.


Happy Creating!

-Bri



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